World's Funniest Island was an Australian comedy event held on the third weekend in October on

Cockatoo Island Cockatoo Island Wareamah is a UNESCO World Heritage Site at the confluence of the Parramatta River and Lane Cove River in Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, Australia. Cockatoo Island is the largest of several harbour islands that were once ...

, in

Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a ria, natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove River, Lane ...

. The first World's Funniest Island event took place 17–18 October 2009. It consisted of approximately 200 shows and involving over 250 performers in 12 indoor venues, and three outdoor stages, playing to 12,000 punters. The team behind World's Funniest Island is John Pinder, Director; Nick Murray, CEO Jigsaw Entertainment;

Michael Chugg Michael Glenn Chugg (born 15 June 1947) is an Australian entrepreneur, businessman and concert tour promoter. As a promoter and manager he was a founder of Frontier Touring Company (1979–99) and Michael Chugg Entertainment (2000–present ...

and Matthew Lazarus Hall, Chugg Entertainment; and Greg James, investor and chairman of the board. The executive producer of World's Funniest Island is Gina Hall. Mark Ford was executive producer of the 2009 event. John Pinder has worked extensively in the comedy industry, having begun as a venue owner and producer of both music and comedy events. He was the founding director of both the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and the Big Laugh Comedy Festival in Western Sydney, and had a hand in founding the Comedy Channel. Pinder worked Nick Murray, both during Murray's time as founding CEO of the Comedy Channel, and in the production of a number of comedy shows for stage and television. Michael Chugg is an agent, manager and concert promoter.

History

Cockatoo Island, situated at the mouth of the

Parramatta Parramatta (; ) is a suburb (Australia), suburb and major commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney. Parramatta is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district, Sydney CBD, on the banks of the Parramatta River. It is co ...

and the

Lane Cove River The Lane Cove River, a northern tributary of the Parramatta River, is a tide-dominated, drowned valley estuary west of Sydney Harbour, located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The river winds through a bushland valley and joins Parramatt ...

s, is the largest island in Sydney Harbour. Having served as a colonial prison from 1839 and then as the Commonwealth Naval Dockyard from 1913, it was opened to the public in 2008. Shortly before being declared public parkland, a handful of people involved with the Australian comedy industry undertook a private tour of the island and recognised its potential as the ideal space for a comedy event. It offered unique indoor and outdoor spaces – including dozens of heritage-listed buildings that once served the island's specific needs as a prison and then a dockyard – as well as views of the Sydney skyline and Sydney Harbour. Its location, a short ferry ride from central Sydney made Cockatoo Island a perfect events location. The Island has also hosted two music festivals, most recently one curated by

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian musician, writer, and actor who fronts the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Known for his baritone voice, Cave's music is characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety ...

All Tomorrow's Parties "All Tomorrow's Parties" is a song by the Velvet Underground and Nico, written by Lou Reed and released as the band's debut single in 1966. The song is from their 1967 debut studio album, ''The Velvet Underground & Nico''. Inspiration for the so ...

. The island is an important location for The

Biennale of Sydney The Biennale of Sydney is an international festival of contemporary art, held every two years in Sydney, Australia. It is a large and well-attended contemporary visual arts event in the country. Alongside the Venice and São Paulo biennales and ...

, the city's major contemporary art event. The second World's Funniest Island event, slated for 16–17 October 2010, was cancelled due to a sponsorship shortfall. News of the event's cancellation appeared on 6 October.

Format

Unlike traditional comedy festivals, World's Funniest Island is an event loosely built on the weekend music festival template, with several stages and indoor venues operating concurrently. A single ticket offers unlimited access to the various shows and include transport to and from the island – via a ferry service operating all day from

Darling Harbour Darling Harbour is a harbour and neighborhood adjacent to the city centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, that is made up of a large recreational and pedestrian precinct that is situated on western outskirts of the Sydney central busines ...

, in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

’s CBD. There are also a number of bars, food and market stalls operating during the festival. In 2010 a camping package will be available for Friday, Saturday and Sunday night.

Venues

The venues on the island vary in size and shape, catering to a wide variety of comedy shows and audiences. The Turbine Hall, for example, is a large capacity venue presenting acts that require space for audiences of 2000 plus. In 2009 acts in The Turbine Hall included

The Goodies The Goodies were a trio of British comedians: Tim Brooke-Taylor (17 July 1940 – 12 April 2020), Graeme Garden (b. 18 February 1943) and Bill Oddie (b. 7 July 1941). The trio created, wrote for and performed in their The Goodies (TV series), ...

(UK),

Alexei Sayle Alexei David Sayle (born 7 August 1952) is an English actor, author, stand-up comedian, television presenter and former recording artist. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement in the 1980s. He was voted the 18th g ...

(UK) and Allah Made Me Funny (USA). Some venues are programmed around a theme. For example, in 2009 the Naval Store offered a selection of Australian acts that had begun life as university revues. That same year, other venues were run as extensions of independent Sydney comedy rooms, with the General Store operating as Comedy On The Edge and the Bomb Shelter, as the Laugh Garage Comedy Club. The complete list of venues and the acts that performed in them in 2009 are listed below.

Programming

The World’s Funniest Island presents a wide range of comedy genres, including stand-up, sketch shows, circus, musical comedy, comic burlesque, movie parodies, comic literary readings, plays, and roving entertainment. There are also exhibitions, workshops and some participation activities designed for adults and children. Artists are selected by the producers. The event is not an open ‘fringe style’ festival.

2009 Program

Proposed 2010 Program (Cancelled)

Notes and references

External links

* World's Funniest Island official website: http://www.worldsfunniestisland.com {{Sydney events Comedy festivals in Australia 2009 establishments in Australia Recurring events established in 2009 Festivals in Sydney